Instagram isn't done with TikTok yet ☕

Instagram is metamorphosing into a familiar shape: "Reels and DMs have driven most of all our growth over the last few years, so we are exploring making them the first two tabs." said Adam Mosseri in a recent Reel. Does this remind you perhaps of a beloved Chinese app?

And so is Instagram exploring this in India, whereupon opening the app, the user finds himself on Reels. There, Instagram is the leading short-form video platform, with 95% of Indian users watching Reels daily (Meta study). The first-ever released app for iPad also confirms this direction: Reels is the no. 1 thing, the user sees on Instagram.

Apart from DMs and Reels, the team is looking into an option to fine-tune the algorithm, by removing or adding interest and "shaping the experience into something that you love".

⏩ Back in the US. Could this announcement be an intent to replace TikTok effectively in the US? Since TikTok users must potentially migrate to an approved alternative, Instagram could tap into that momentum.